Percutaneous connectors are, generally speaking, connectors having a first half that is attached to an animal body (typically to the skull) and a second half that can be connected to the first half for transmitting information out of or into the animal body. Unfortunately, when an animal test subject such as a chimpanzee wears the first half, mating the two halves together typically requires anaesthetization of the test subject. This greatly increases the expense of each instance of connecting the two halves in terms of materials, time and test subject health. The anaesthetization must currently be performed because mating the two halves requires some delicate adjustments, for example the careful tightening of a pair of screws. Additionally, it is typical to implant the first half into the skull and permit skull bone tissue to grow into surface irregularities in the portion of the first half touching skull bone. It is very important that little to no force be applied to the first half so that the first half will not be wrenched out of its setting in the skull bone.
The design goals described above are particularly difficult to meet in the context of a high-density connector. In order to accommodate a high pin density it is generally desirable to use a sheet of anisotropically conducting material to electrically connect the two connector halves. This material must be compressed with a considerable amount (35-70 lbs) of force, which has complicated the task of coupling the connector halves faced by users of prior art connectors.
In a first separate aspect the present invention is an electrical connector that comprises a pressure surface bearing a first array of electrical contacts. In addition a side wall has an exterior surface and is physically connected to the pressure surface. The exterior surface bears a second array of electrical contacts, which are electrically connected to the first array of electrical contacts.
In a second separate aspect the present invention is an electrical connector, comprising a first pressure surface bearing a first array of contact pads a second pressure surface bearing a second array of contact pads. In addition a pressure applying mechanism presses the first pressure surface into the second pressure surface. This mechanism includes a ball screw and a manual actuator that permits a user to turn the ball screw to press the first pressure surface into the second pressure surface.
The foregoing and other objectives, features and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.